CBS tabs Auburn football as potential landing spot for Grayson McCall

The Auburn football program is now under the leadership of Hugh Freeze, and with a new, not even fully formed coaching staff this close to the early signing period it’s fully expected that the Tigers’ head coach will lean heavily on the transfer portal in his first year.

There are many priority spots that the Tigers will be looking to fill, including the edge position and the offensive line. But one position that will be interesting to keep an eye on is that of the quarterback.

After a roller coaster of a year in the Auburn football program, redshirt freshman Robby Ashford ultimately cemented his role as QB1, though the job was initially given to TJ Finley before the season began. Finley never came back from the injury sustained in the Penn State game, and then Zach Calzada announced his medical redshirt, leaving true freshman Holden Geriner to play back up for Ashford.

Now, Calzada has officially entered the transfer portal, and although Finley is expected to transfer as well it has been crickets from his camp. With only Ashford and Geriner, the Tigers will be looking to the transfer portal, and they’ll be taking a hard look at former Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall, per CBS Sports:

"While Robby Ashford showed flashes of promise as a dual-threat quarterback in Bryan Harsin’s system this season, McCall is a more accurate passer and proven winner. As Freeze figures out his quarterback situation, McCall should stand out as a particularly appealing option. McCall turned in an excellent performance against Freeze’s Liberty team in the 2020 Cure Bowl that Freeze should remember quite well. Though the Flames won the game, McCall was a better passer than Liberty’s Malik Willis that night. Freeze developed Willis into an NFL Draft pick and has consistently fielded exciting offenses led by dynamic quarterbacks during his career. Auburn also seems like a good cultural fit for McCall, who could be the dose of lighter fluid for Freeze at Auburn that Bo Wallace was for Freeze early in his tenure at Ole Miss."

McCall is most certainly the type of player that a transfer class can be built around, and would draw other high-quality players to the Plains with his proven ability to win. A strong leader on the offense would have a huge impact on Freeze’s first Auburn football offense.